Bradfield Highway (Sydney)

Bradfield Highway New South Wales
Bradfield Highway, south-westerly aspect
General information
Type	Highway
Length	2.4 km (1.5 mi)
Opened	1932
Former route number	National Route 1 (1955–1992)[1] No Shield (1992–1993) Metroad 2 (1993–2006)[2] Entire Route
Major junctions
North end	Warringah Freeway Pacific Highway North Sydney
South end	Western Distributor Cahill Expressway Sydney CBD
Highway system
Highways in Australia National Highway • Freeways in Australia Highways in New South Wales

The Bradfield Highway is a highway in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. At 2.4 kilometres (1.5 mi) long it is one of the shortest highways in Australia.

The highway was named after Dr John Bradfield, who oversaw the tendering process for the construction of the Sydney Harbour Bridge.

The Bradfield Highway opened in 1932 and begins at the end of the Western Distributor in the Sydney CBD, crosses the Sydney Harbour Bridge and ends at the Warringah Freeway in North Sydney (just North of the Pacific Highway intersection). In 2001, 159,587 vehicles a day used the highway.^[3]

The Bradfield Highway carries six lanes of traffic across the eight lane Sydney Harbour Bridge. The other two traffic lanes on the Sydney Harbour Bridge are used for the Cahill Expressway, which run only southbound on the bridge. During peak periods three out of the six lanes are reversed, giving a 2 × 4, 3 × 3 or 5 × 1 flow. The default is 4 × 2. (Four north, two south) The direction of the lanes is indicated by electronic signage above each lane. The lanes are numbered one to six from west to east. Lane six was also reversed prior to 1990 during the evening rush hour, giving a 6 × 0 flow, but this no longer occurs because of changes made to the Warringah Freeway to accommodate the Sydney Harbour Tunnel.

In August 1992, the Sydney Harbour Tunnel opened, which helped to relieve congestion on the Bradfield Highway.^[4]

Exits and Interchanges

LGA	Location	km	mi	Destinations	Notes
North Sydney	North Sydney	0	0	Warringah Freeway (M1) – North Sydney, Newcastle, Brisbane
Sydney Harbour		1	1	Sydney Harbour Bridge
Sydney	Sydney CBD	2.4	1.5	Western Distributor (A4) south / Cahill Expressway east – Ashfield, Parramatta	Bradfield Highway continues as Western Distributor; Cahill Expressway westbound merges to Bradfield Highway northbound; no connection to Cahill Expressway eastbound
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Incomplete access

See also

Australian Roads portal

References

Route map: Bing / Google

1. Sydney Harbour Crossings, Ozroads, Retrieved on 3 June 2013.
2. Former Alignment of Metroad 2, Ozroads, Retrieved on 3 June 2013.
3. "Sydney Harbour Bridge page". Retrieved 2013-06-05.
4. "The Sydney Harbour Tunnel". Air Quality in Tunnels. New South Wales, Australia: NSW Government: Transport, Roads & Maritime Services. p. 9. RMS 12 178. Retrieved 2013-06-05.